KARACHI, Feb 8: Karachi’s medico-legal officers are competent enough to adjudge whether a suspected suicide is indeed self-inflicted, but experts believe they are not well trained enough to discern this in more complicated cases, and further do not have access to enough forensic equipment.
“If it’s a suicide by firing, or by alleged self-immolation, then it’s more difficult to tell,” said Prof Dr Fateh Mohammad Burfat, a trained criminologist and head of the University of Karachi’s Department of Criminology.
“There are many burning cases which are actually domestic violence cases,” observed Prof Dr Burfat, “but are wrongly reported as being suicide. In order for the MLOs to tell the difference between murder and suicide in these cases, they need more training and forensic technology, which they do not have.
“For all complicated suicide cases we need more training and technology,” he added. “Because of my experience as a criminologist, I can say that they do not have either the training or experience to deal with these cases.”
Dr Afzal Raja Memon, MLO at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, admitted that his department cannot differentiate between self-inflicted burns and those inflicted by a second party. “We mainly need to identify the victim [in these cases]. We will write down where the burns are and their extent, and we will note the cause of death. But we can’t tell if someone has done it to themselves or not, that is the police’s job.”
Responding to a question regarding the availability of forensic technology in order to make that judgement, Dr Memon said “Forensic technology is now very advanced in the rest of the world, but we do not have any such thing here.”
Assigning responsibility in hangings
When it comes to hangings, MLOs say they use their clinical findings in order to ascertain whether the victim committed suicide, or was killed by someone else.
“If there is complete asphyxia, then the full weight of the body will be on the neck, and if it is partial there will be some support for the body,” said Dr Kaleem Shaikh, senior MLO at the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre.
“Hanging blocks the oxygen supply to the blood, and the blood will start flowing up, so you will see bleeding from the neck and face,” Dr Shaikh added. “There will be dribbling of saliva from the angle of the mouth, and the mouth will be at an angle facing away from the knot [of the rope]. That is a sure sign of suicide.”
Supplementary signs that suicide has occurred include the sticking out of the tongue between the teeth and the protrusion of the eyes.
“A false hanging will have none of these signs,” said Dr Shaikh.
Dr Nisar Ali Shah, an MLO at Civil Hospital, added: “We check to see if the ligature wound is oval or circular. If it is oval, then it is self-inflicted, but if it is a circular wound, the body was tied and we call it strangulation. The circular wound has parched, raised edges.”
Dr Shah said three things indicate that a victim has been strangled, rather than committed suicide: First, the presence of a circular wound; second, the presence of an inconspicuous mark/bruise around the neck and lastly, if the distance between the ground and feet is not great enough.
Dr Afzal Raja Memon said a real hanging will exhibit a single, continuous wound around the neck located at an angle. He said there will be no marks of resistance on the body, and the hands will not be clenched.
On internal examination, MLOs expect to find congested lungs with signs of haemorrhaging for cases of suicide by hanging. “The colour of the blood will change to a dark, cherry red,” said Dr Kaleem, indicating that this is due to the lower oxygen content.
Site and type of wound noted
For shootings, MLO’s say they primarily base their analysis on the location and type of wound.
“In a suicide by shooting, the shot will always be at close range,” said Dr Shaikh. “As a result there will be gunpowder and deposits [on the skin]. There will also be a muzzle print if the gun was right up against the skin, as well as blackening around the wound.”
In normal gunshot wounds, the entry wound is always smaller than the exit wound. For close-range suicide gunshot wounds, though, Dr Shaikh said the entry wound is bigger.
MLOs will also look at the site of the injury in order to ascertain if suicide has occurred. “A right handed man will hit his right temple, or the left side of his chest,” observed Dr Shaikh. A left handed man will do the opposite, he added.
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